Construction workers warned NHS may not be able to fix severed limbs if they continue working in coronavirus confusion

BUILDERS have been warned the NHS may not be able to fix severed limbs if they continue working amid coronavirus lockdown confusion.

Workers are still turning up to sites across the country, after mixed messages from the government, with medics worried potential injuries could put the health service under further strain.

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One NHS trauma surgeon sent a desperate text to BBC News host Sophie Raworth saying: “All builders are still at work!

“Clogging roads and Tubes.

“They need to know that we won’t be able to do [the] usual heroic salvage of limbs when they have the inevitable industrial accidents”.

They need to know that we won’t be able to do [the] usual heroic salvage of limbs when they have the inevitable industrial accidents.

However, unions have argued that guidance from Boris Johnson has not been clear cut – with workers unsure whether they should turn up to jobs or not.

The PM last night put the country on lockdown but did not close down the nation's building sites.

Britain's covid-19 death toll has now hit 336 with more than 6,710 cases in the UK.

But this morning concerning pictures emerged on social media of packed rush hour Tubes.

'ESSENTIAL' WORK TO CONTINUE

Cabinet Secretary Michael Gove said today that “essential” work should continue but “common sense” to the spread of covid-19 should be practiced.

He told GMB: “Yes, there's some essential construction work that needs to continue and it should be the case that with appropriate sensitivity that should continue – people can continue to work on new sites but we need people to take common sense.

Major construction work should go ahead. We need to look at the nature of work that's being done.

“Anyone that should conceivably work, should.

“Major construction work should go ahead. We need to look at the nature of work that's being done."

But Mr Gove said work on homes when people are still inside was not “appropriate” and encouraged Brits to continue with social distancing.

The Tory MP explained: “It’s not appropriate if people are at home. If there's intimate contact with a builder it would not be appropriate".

MIXED MESSAGES

Downing Street is understood to be reluctant to stop work across all sites with the construction industry being a key contributor to the country’s economy.

The sector contributes £117bn with 2.4million jobs – which is around seven per cent of all jobs in the UK.

There are also major building projects that are still under way including the construction of the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station – Britain’s first nuclear plant in decades – HS2 and Crossrail.

Thousands of workers report to these sites with 4,000 at Hinkley, making it the country's biggest construction project.

Pictures on social media this morning showed crowds of workers at the construction of the MGT power site in Middlesbrough.

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MGT is the largest biomass station in the world with 1,700 workers.

Housebuilder Taylor Wimpey said it has closed its construction sites, show homes and sale sites due to coronavirus.

But competitor Redrow said its sites remain open with "strict precautions in place including enhanced levels of cleaning, additional hygiene facilities and social distancing".

'UNEVIABLE' POSITION

The National Federation of Builders have labelled the situation for work crews as “uneviable” but said crews will continue to turn up at sites until otherwise.
Richard Beresford, chief executive of the NFB, told the Guardian: “Our industry does not want to stop working. Until we are told by the government to down tools, we will be doing everything we can to support the safest possible working environment.”

Dan Dobson, a Unite member, said workers are worried about refusing to turn up over coronavirus scares because it could cost them financially.

He said “The government needs to close the non-critical sites and extend the wage support scheme to the registered self-employed, and they need to take those actions immediately. Construction workers cannot afford to miss out.”

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